He Who Laughs Last…

Some people make a living fixing cars, building homes or selling stuff. Others play sports professionally, others make movies. Others make people laugh. Few are good at everything though no matter how hard they try.

This became rapidly apparent when former Montreal Canadiens’ defenseman and fan favourite P.K. Subban followed through with his pre-trade arrangement to appear at the Just for Laughs Festival in Montreal last week. Subban, a good hockey player, tried to turn into a comedian but he amateurishly fell into a dark humour that he might end up regretting one of these days.

The fact is that for the most part, Subban’s “jokes”, poking fun of his former employer, were too close to the truth (or to the popular belief) and only those who now have a beef against the Canadiens found them “funny”. In reality, they weren’t funny at all. He simply used the big stage, a place he is very familiar with and possibly the main reason for his departure, as a way to get back to team owner Geoff Molson, General Manager Marc Bergevin and head coach Michel Therrien.

Don’t think for a second that his words went unnoticed, not only on the seventh floor of the Bell Centre, but across the NHL, including Gary Bettman‘s office and the Nashville Predators’ management group. When it comes to things like this, the NHL is a tight knit group, a boys’ club, and they have a very long memory. And there are many examples of that, including Ted Nolan.

Humour is the most engaging cowardice. ~ Robert Frost

Subban is likely too talented to not be able to find some work somewhere, but this will be added to the loads of controversy following him since he joined the NHL (and before). To use some baseball term, this is a strike against him. It’s not strike three, but they will start adding up if he doesn’t start respecting the people around the league.

I asked on Twitter the other day, semi-sarcastically, if those laughing at Subban’s attempt to humour would be laughing if Marc Bergevin had taken the stage to tell some truth-based stories to put down Subban? Asking the question is answering it, and those people know it. They would see it as unnecessary attacks against their favourite player and would pile on the accusations on the organisation, something they do anyway.

It seems like the organisation isn’t taking the bait by replying to Subban’s antics since the trade and that is a sign of class. Acknowledging such behaviour would only play in the hands of the disgruntled and add fuel to the fire. The Canadiens have nothing to gain by doing that… just yet. Subban better realise that not every team will react that way as many purposely leak information to help justify their moves, as show by the Bruins with Kessel, Seguin and Hamilton, just to name a few.

Having said that, why not have a little fun of our own? When you think of it, Subban is quite comparable to Shea Weber and that goes beyond the hockey aspect. Here are a few comparable between the two men:

Wait what? That’s not funny?

Everything is funny, as long as it’s happening to somebody else. ~ Will Rogers

In the meantime, many Montreal Canadiens’ fans just like yours truly cannot wait to see Shea Weber perform for the Montreal Canadiens. We know that with Weber, Radulov, Shaw and Price, this team will be much improved and that the air in the dressing room will be much fresher. Ultimately, it should lead to more wins and for those who cheer the logo in front of the jersey, instead of the name in the back, it’s the ultimate goal.